Roman Volken
@roman_volken
Landscape photographer based in Switzerland
Everything began with the movie “The secret life of Walter Mitty”. I was 16 years old when I watched it for the first time and that’s how I discovered my fascination for photography. This movie made me addicted to capturing a special moment in a picture. Over the next few years my brother motivated me a lot because he also enjoys photography. He gave me my first tripod for Christmas and we would go on adventures together. Once we had a family reunion and my brother and I sneaked away to shoot the milky way over the Swiss Alps. It was absolutely worth it to leave the party; I was totally blown away by his final pictures. This night has pushed me even more to go out and shoot. The fact that my brother is also into photography has helped a lot in obtaining the basic knowhow of photography and editing.
"From that night on, I have spent every single weekend taking photos of nature and landscapes. Photography has become a big part of my life."
When I‘m not working as a landscape gardener I‘m spending my time hiking around in the mountains. Although even when I am working I am outside since my job involves planting trees, building walls out of stones, creating different patios and stairs… So most of all being in nature – I could have never imagined working in an office 24/7. That’s also the reason why landscape photography relates to my profession and why it feels so natural and ‘correct’ to me. Unfortunately, I‘ve only got time on the weekends but I hope that I can dedicate more time to photography at some point. Who knows what the future will unfold.
"What I am sure about is that I will keep photographing and working on my art."
I am just at the beginning, overcoming the first obstacles a photographer is facing when starting out. For example, I couldn’t get to certain places because I didn’t have my driving license yet. Figuring out how to get there by public transport, if even possible, or convincing others to come with you is time consuming and makes you feel very dependent and inflexible. We all learn quickly that great photographs can’t be planned. Related to that, I saw the weather conditions as another huge impediment. Often I couldn’t take the photo I wanted and it made me feel frustrated.
One of the most impressive trips I‘ve made so far was in the south of Iceland. The weather was extremely rough. I was walking at the black sand beach when the wind literally blew me away and the rain felt like sharp stitches on my face. It was hard to shoot a good picture in these conditions but I kind of liked this challenge. I was absolutely fascinated by the power of mother nature.
On this trip I also shot my favorite picture, the one with the lighthouse. It took me about three hours of driving on a gravel road to get there, which was totally worth it! On this holiday I realized that I am lighthouse-addicted. Yes, it sounds weird but it is such a great point of interest in a photo. It is mystical, it gives very different atmospheres depending on the weather circumstances and above all, a lighthouse stands almost always alone, proudly, facing the endless sea and protected by an impressive coastline.
There are a lot of people who inspire me on instagram like Karl Shakur or Giulia Gartner and Nathaniel Wise, but my girlfriend is a huge inspiration too. She stimulates my personal and professional development, supports me whenever and wherever, be it to hike up a mountain at 4am or to sleep in a tent when it is zero degrees outside. She poses for my photos even though she doesn‘t like to do that at all… The greatest adventure together with her was when we hiked up a mountain to shoot the milky way. We made a fire, laid under the stars and drank beer. It was a perfectly clear night sky! Although it was pretty cold the campfire was keeping us warm. These are moments I deeply cherish.
"Accompanied or by myself, the landscapes in my hometown in Switzerland are breathtaking and the great feeling the scenery provokes within me can’t be described with words."
There are high mountains with beautiful snowy peaks, glaciers, lots of forest and lakes and so much more! In my opinion, the most important factor of getting a good picture is to be in a special place at a special time. For me that perfect shot would be a sunrise high up on a mountain. Looking over the clouds, peaks being touched by the first soft sunlight, your heart and mind being taken over by peace and bliss.
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